


Greetings (Again)

by boppgoestheweasel



Series: the dadschlatt collection [9]
Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Video Blogging RPF
Genre: ?? - Freeform, Angst, DadSchlatt, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Kid Fundy, Kid Tubbo, Rated for swearing, Sally is humanized in this, Wilbur is Fundy's dad, a bit domestic, dadsoot, even though she's just mentioned, is that a tag?, maybe ooc?, no beta we die like men, uncle quackity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-03-13 16:34:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28656555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/boppgoestheweasel/pseuds/boppgoestheweasel
Summary: Schlatt and Wilbur haven't seen each other for a long while due to the secrets they kept from each other. Little did they know that they had the exact same secret.
Relationships: Alexis | Quackity & Jschlatt, Floris | Fundy & Wilbur Soot, Jschlatt & Toby Smith | Tubbo, Jschlatt & Wilbur Soot, Wilbur Soot/Sally (past)
Series: the dadschlatt collection [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2080011
Comments: 25
Kudos: 430





	1. The Phonecall

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!! This was a request from user terificallyCatastrophic!! This fic kinda goes hand in hand with the final chapter of the last part; usually I make these so you don't have to read them in any specific order, but for this one, it's a bit of a continuation! 
> 
> As always, I write these characters based on the ones portrayed in the SMP roleplay, never the real people! If any of the CCs mentioned are uncomfortable with the content I have written, it will be deleted immediately.

After Christmas, Schlatt started thinking about his life in high school, and the amazing people he met during those four years. Sure, only one of them really stayed around, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have more friends. One in particular he knew would stay if he could have. 

Wilbur Soot was one of the coolest people Schlatt had ever met. He was a year older, and Schlatt believes he left too soon, then again he lived by the philosophy that you should take any opportunity given to you before it’s too late. Wilbur thought the exact same way. So when he was offered a scholarship to a far away university, you know he took it. 

Wilbur was definitely a “ladies man,” even if he didn’t believe it himself. Schlatt and Quackity were always impressed by the way he could talk to  _ anyone  _ and somehow romance them without even trying. Wilbur hated it though, because he had his eyes on one girl and one girl only.

Schlatt remembered her name; Sally. Sally was a rather strange character, believed to have some sort of fish quality about her, but Wilbur never stopped talking about how thankful he was for her. They had been friends since elementary apparently, and he started liking her when they got into the 9th grade. The story was rather sweet, but that didn’t stop Alex and Schlatt from making fun of their friend. Wilbur was the only one with a consistent girlfriend between the three of them- Quackity wasn’t too interested in dating at the time, and Schlatt was more fond of hooking up for a night, that was, until Tubbo came along of course.

Wilbur had left before Schlatt got into that whole mess, though. The summer before Schlatt’s senior year Wilbur had said his goodbyes, and he was off to college at the university. It was definitely outside of L’manberg, further than El Rapids. He was  _ too  _ far. Throughout the year, Schlatt sent letters, but Wilbur never replied back, or maybe the letters got lost in the mail. Around March of the next year, before Schlatt’s 18th birthday, he got word that one of the girls he hooked up with was pregnant. He felt terrible, so he promised to help take care of the child. Little did he know that he would be left on his own. He didn’t blame the girl, he couldn’t. He never messaged Wilbur again; he thought his friend would be disappointed. Maybe ask too many questions, maybe not ask  _ enough  _ questions, and go on to never talk to him ever again. 

They had spent New Years at Quackity’s mom’s house, and then a day or so later they were back on their way to L’manberg. 

“Hey, your mom still had those pictures? Of us in high school?” Schlatt couldn’t help himself from turning down the music a bit.

“Oh yeah, yeah she keeps all that stuff. You know she still talks to a few people we used to know.” Quackity kept his eyes on the road.

Schlatt thought for a moment. “Are you serious? Why?”

“I don’t fucking know man, she just has connections. Like I’m sure Wilbur is a musician or some shit now, and apparently he goes to the University still. Taking classes to become a CEO, or something. I can’t remember.”

Schlatt narrowed his eyes. Did Quackity read Schlatt’s thoughts throughout the trip?

“I wonder how that fucker is doing.”

“I know you do. Is that why you kept staring at the damn pictures?” Quackity asked, amused.

Schlatt’s head snapped towards him. “Was it really that fucking obvious?”

“Holy shit man, yes, yes it was,” Quackity laughed. “Sometimes I thought that there wouldn’t be a way to pull you away from them.”

Schlatt looked down, slightly embarrassed. Karl laughed from the back, where he was sitting with Tubbo. 

“We should really try to get in touch with him again. Maybe my mom can-”

“No no, no.” Schlatt waved his hands. “I don’t want to do that at all. He doesn’t need to know about what happened to me. You saw how your mom practically shoved food down my throat, I don’t need him pitying me.”

“Man, it wouldn’t be like that. You know how Wilbur is. He would understand what’s going on.” 

“Well, he can’t come to  _ my  _ house. I don’t want him having to stay there.” 

“Maybe we could all hang out at my place?” Quackity suggested. “When we get back, I’ll call my mom. It’s obvious you wanna at least  _ talk  _ to him. She can give me his number.”

Schlatt mulled it over and over in his head for the next several hours. He thought about hearing Wilbur’s voice for the first time in too long. What would he say? What does he have to talk about that doesn’t include Tubbo? He really didn’t want Wilbur to know he was a borderline high school dropout and a broke dad of a three-year-old. Maybe he could just… lie? What are the chances of Wilbur coming to visit anyway?

Schlatt stared at the number that had been sloppily written on the torn piece of notebook paper. 

_ +1 (443) 546-8723 _

He didn’t recognize the area code. He was sure he knew every area code from at least a 7 hour radius, but considering Wilbur was gone further than El Rapids, it made sense he wouldn’t. 

He had his phone in his hand, trying to keep it steady as he shook slightly. Tubbo was sleeping; it was 8pm. What time was it for Wilbur? Maybe he should just wait until the next day. Then again, that’s what he had been saying for a week now. He needed to do it now- this was the furthest he had ever gotten. He had the number, the phone in his hand, and no one was there to interrupt his and Wilbur’s chat. 

He knew that the thought of Wilbur not even picking up was keeping him from dialing the number, or even worse, that Wilbur answered, heard it was Schlatt, and then promptly hung up. That was the absolute worst case scenario, and he was almost planning on it.

They never fought though, it’s not like Wilbur had a reason to hate Schlatt. But something in Schlatt’s mind kept him thinking that anyone he ever knew hated him, even Quackity at some times, even though the younger man had never shown distaste for Schlatt before. Maybe it was the constant alcohol, he was never sure. 

8:15.  _ Jesus Christ, just dial the fucking number.  _

Schlatt brought his fingers to the keypad on the house phone and took a breath. Why the hell was he so sweaty? His mind raced with how he would say “hi.” The most simple human word, “hi.” Would he say “hello”, or “hey”? Or just “hi”? Maybe “hola”, to show that he wasn’t a  _ total  _ deadbeat? That he at least knew a bit of a second language?

Before he knew it, the phone was ringing.  _ Oh holy fuck,  _ when did he finish dialing the numbers? Did he do it subconsciously? 

Two rings passed.

Three.

Four-

“Hello?”

Schlatt’s eyes went wide as he gripped the phone tighter, ensuring that it wouldn’t fall.

“Hello? Hello? Is anyone there?”

His voice was just the same; low, deep, full of confidence. 

“Wilbur Soot?” Schlatt cleared his throat.

“This is him.” Schlatt could hear the amusement in the man’s voice. 

“It’s J Schlatt.” 

“Schlatt!” Schlatt’s brows raised when the man on the other side of the line enthused. “Wow, so great to hear from you again man! How’ve you been?”

Fuck, he didn’t hang up? He didn’t ask what the fuck happened to him, why he never tried to visit? Nothing?

“Oh, uh, yeah, yeah I’ve been just fine,” Schlatt swallowed the nervous lump in his throat. “You?”

“Oh, it could be better,” Wilbur said, sighing. Schlatt could’ve sworn he heard what sounded like a child in the background. “Fundy! Please, I’m on the phone.”

“Who the hell is Fundy?” Schlatt asked. “Is that one of your backroom girls, Wilbur?”

Wilbur laughed. “No no, Fundy’s, uh… he’s my son.” 

Schlatt furrowed his brows, and his mouth opened to say something, but when nothing came out he cleared his throat.  _ Try again. _

“You have a fucking  _ son?”  _ Schlatt asked, incredulous.

“Ah yeah, he’s about four now.”

Schlatt’s mind  _ whirred.  _ The man he didn’t want to tell about his son… had a son?

“That’s fucking  _ insane,  _ I didn’t talk to you all these years because  _ I  _ have a son too,” Schlatt laughed.

“You have a son? How old is he?” Wilbur asked; he sounded tired. Schlatt definitely knew why now.

“He just turned three.”

“Fundy’s fourth birthday is in a month or so.” 

Schlatt shook his head. They had a kid around the same time? Just a few months difference? Who did Wilbur get pregnant? Was he still with her?

“I didn’t talk to  _ you  _ because I had a son, I can’t believe you had the same damn reason,” Wilbur laughed. “Fundy,  _ please  _ put that lighter down!”

“Wow, yeah, I didn’t… if I would’ve  _ known-” _

“How’s everyone? Quackity? His mom?”

“They’re really great,” Schlatt nodded, “I just left Quackity’s mom’s house like a week ago. We went over for Christmas and New Years.”

Wilbur gawked at the words that Schlatt said. “How fun. Wish I could’ve gone. Dammit, it’s been quite a while, hasn’t it?” 

“Yeah. The reason I called you is because… well, Quackity’s mom still has all our pictures up in her house. Quackity noticed that I was staring at them, and he suggested I called you. So here I fucking am.”

Wilbur chuckled; just as Schlatt remembered. “You’re exactly the same, J. No different than you were four years ago.”

_ Not true, I’m different in a shit ton of ways.  _ “I could say the same for you.”

The line went silent for a moment.

“Hey, why don’t we finally see each other?” Wilbur suggested, breaking the silence. “Now that we have our ‘secrets’ out of the way, now that I won’t have to worry about everyone being annoyed with my kid.”

Schlatt laughed. “That’s not a bad idea, but I’ve gotta call Quackity. My… house isn’t really fit for company. You guys would have nowhere to sleep.”

“We’ll stay at Quackity’s then?” Wilbur asked.

“Yeah, yeah I think that would be best.”

“Alright, it’s set then! You talk to Big Q, and I’ll wait for further instructions. Let me know what happens, J.” 

“Sure sure, nice talking to you Wil. See you soon.” 


	2. His Car Pulls Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just as the title implies. Wilbur's finally there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's sock again! sorry about the late update, this was supposed to go up yesterday, but the story turned into mf five chapters. This story might be cheesy and a little too domestic, but I enjoyed writing it!
> 
> updates on this series might be just a smidge slower; school started back up. But I'll do everything I can to be consistent! Anyway, enjoy!

Obviously, Quackity was absolutely thrilled to hear that Schlatt had  _ actually  _ called Wilbur.

Schlatt hadn’t even gone to sleep that night after he hung up. He simply couldn’t, he was too… dare he say,  _ excited.  _ Excited to see his long lost friend, it seemed. 

He couldn’t even fathom that Wilbur-  _ the  _ Wilbur Soot- was coming to visit them. It was about 9:30 when Schlatt stopped pacing the room and actually thought for a second. He replayed the conversation in his head over and over again, before he finally remembered that he needed to tell Quackity about the plan, and that he needed to get back to Wilbur as soon as possible. 

Oh, he needed to tell Quackity.

But he didn’t feel like calling him, no, he felt like this needed more than just a phone call. So what did the man do? He lifted his sleeping toddler from the bed he was sleeping in, loaded him in the car, and drove to Quackity’s house- Tubbo didn’t stir once. 

He arrived at around 10:15, and he carried Tubbo to the front door- the child was still sleeping- and he knocked on Quackity’s door, knowing for absolute sure the younger man wasn’t sleeping this early. “Early” being in their standards. 

Sure enough, the door swung open in a matter of moments, and Quackity looked Schlatt up and down- his first instinct was to ask if something had gone horribly wrong, like if Tubbo was deathly ill or something, but Schlatt had said,  _ “no no no, none of that. Let me in.” _

Quackity did in fact let the man in, and Schlatt laid Tubbo on the couch gently before he turned back to the younger man, who looked rather confused. 

Schlatt explained that he had called Wilbur, and that he said he had a son, Fundy, who was almost four. He explained that Wilbur had been just as hesitant as Schlatt was, and that he definitely wanted to visit. 

Quackity was quick to hold in his yelp of surprise when he heard that Wilbur was going to visit; his eyes flickered to the sleeping toddler on the sofa.

_ “He’s going to stay here, with you,”  _ Schlatt explained, and Quackity nodded. No, Quackity’s house wasn’t much bigger than Schlatt’s, but if he cleaned out the storage room, they could stay in there. It was a much better alternative to Schlatt’s house, where they would either take the living room or stay in Tubbo’s room.

And just as Schlatt expected, Quackity went off to start cleaning up the room immediately, Schlatt had laughed and sat down for a moment, but then he got right back up and followed to the room Quackity was in. There was no way he could just go home and relax; they needed to get this place ready for Wilbur and his son, and maybe potentially his son’s mom…? Was Wilbur even with someone? It led him back to thinking about who Wilbur had a child with. Was it someone from high school? Someone from his college? His partner would’ve been pregnant the year he left… at least a few months after he left, right? Fundy was just a few months older than Tubbo, maybe a little more than half a year, at most. Maybe he should’ve asked if Wilbur had a plus one with him. 

They spent the rest of the night moving things and boxes around the room, including putting up the spare bed that Quackity had broken down in the room. Schlatt always wondered what the bundle of wood pieces were. Once the room was put together and comfortable looking, it looked rather nice. The bed was a queen, and a dresser sat next to it on one of its sides. A mirror was across the room on the wall, looking at the bed. There wasn’t anything on the walls except for a few canvases that Quackity had painted on, seeing as it was just a storage room. All the boxes that had been in the room messily were now lined against the walls, sat on top and next to each other. 

Now they were ready to call Wilbur, but seeing as the time was about 3:30 in the morning, they didn’t dare to call a man with a son at this time. Hell, they didn’t even know Wilbur’s time zone; it could be earlier or later. So they would just wait until the morning. 

The next morning when they finally decided it was a reasonable time, they dialed Wilbur’s number on Quackity’s house phone. Quackity held in whatever he had to say; he wanted to speak to Wilbur in person before he spilled his life story on the phone. 

_ “Alright big man, I’ll be there tomorrow sometime. Could I get an address?” _

_ Tomorrow?  _ Schlatt thought. He assumed it would at least be a week, maybe even two. Did he really want to visit that badly?

He gave Wilbur the address of Quackity’s place, and the rest was history to be made. 

And there was his car, pulling up to Quackity’s house the next day. 

Schlatt had come over that day after he packed a bag for him and Tubbo, assuming they would probably stay over the first night; there was so much to catch up on. Around 3 in the afternoon, there was Wilbur. 

_ “Schlatt, I think he-” _

Quackity didn’t even have to finish his sentence because Schlatt was very nonchalantly already at the door, waiting to open it at an appropriate time, a time where it wasn’t too fucking creepy. He didn’t want Wilbur to think he was a fucking psychopath, even though he lowkey felt like one. Could you blame him? He hadn’t seen Wilbur in quite awhile, and they were best friends, maybe as close as him and Quackity. All of them were really close. 

Quackity had grabbed Tubbo and took him outside with them; he followed behind Schlatt when the man finally opened the door.

Wilbur was sitting behind the wheel, parallel parking on the side of the street. There was a small figure in the back of the car, bouncing along to what Schlatt could only assume was music; that’s exactly what Tubbo would do when he wasn’t tired. Wilbur unbuckled and stepped out of the car, not making eye contact with his old friends for the moment he got his son out of the car as well. It was like he was savoring the moment, like how Quackity wouldn’t talk to him on the phone. It was “build-up”... fucking nerds.

Schlatt’s eyebrows couldn’t stop from rising as he saw the child Wilbur acquired. He was… a fox? His son was a fox? He looked a bit taller than Tubbo- Tubbo was shorter than most kids around his age- and he wore a big, fluffy sweater, similar to his dad, who was wearing a rather large sweater as well, along with jeans and boots, topped with glasses and a beanie; literally nothing changed from high school. Then again, it was really only about four years. 

It wasn’t a surprise that his son was a fox, though. Some hybrids were just straight animals, opposed to him and Quackity, who were only partly the animals that they had in their DNA. Strange world they lived in. And in Fundy’s case, he was just an animal. 

Finally, Wilbur had Fundy’s hand in his, and he turned towards his friends. No, they didn’t do the cheesy “run up to your friend calling their name with tears in your eyes since you haven’t seen them in what feels like forever” hug. No, it was quite calm, even if that wasn’t what anyone on the scene was feeling. You could tell, because when Wilbur finally got close enough to hugging distance, he grabbed onto his friends like he would never see them again. 

They had gone through some shit together in high school. Quackity and Schlatt were bullied ruthlessly, Quackity’s beloved mom had fallen ill (thankfully she recovered), and Wilbur’s adopted brother had gone missing, and no one knew where he had gone. Those two were immensely close as well, and Schlatt wasn’t even sure if the brother was ever found. He would have to ask when he got the chance. 

All in all, it was just good to see each other again, all of them, because none of them thought they would make it out of high school. It was tough. 

“Goddamn, look at you,” Schlatt said, grabbing Wilbur by the shoulders after their tight hug. “You don’t even look any different.

Wilbur laughed, “The only thing different about your dumbass is the facial hair and unruly horns.” 

Quackity laughed as Schlatt rolled his eyes.

“And Big Q, your wings! They’re fucking  _ ginormous!”  _ Wilbur walked to the side of Quackity and gently pet the wings that were coming from his back. 

“Is this a good thing for you?” Quackity asked, a chuckle rising in his throat. 

“Yes, yes I reckon it is,” Wilbur gave Quackity a pat on the back. “It’s really good to see you. Both of you.”

“It’s good to see you too, man,” Quackity smiled. “And, is that…?” 

Wilbur followed Quackity’s pointed finger to the small character behind his legs. There was his son, clinging to the fabric of Wilbur’s pants, looking up at all of the men with glossy eyes. 

“Oh yes! This is my son, Fundy. Fundy, say hello to my friends. This is Quackity, and this is Schlatt,” Wilbur spoke to his son gently, and Fundy looked at each of them as they were directed to him. 

“Hello,” Fundy muttered, and he only inched behind Wilbur more. Schlatt thought that was funny, because once Tubbo was introduced to someone new, he would be shy for only a moment before he started to blabber on about something he did the other day that was almost always made up. 

“Hey Fundy, you know I have someone you might like to play with,” Schlatt bent down slightly, reaching for his kid who… was nowhere to be found. 

What the fuck? Where was his kid?

As he looked around more, he heard laughing from behind Wilbur, and he peaked around, finally seeing his little rascal. 

“Hello!” Tubbo smiled, looking up at Wilbur who was now looking down at the toddler. Tubbo turned to Fundy, who was also attached to Wilbur, and he smiled wider, “Hello!”

“Yep. That’s uh, that’s Tubbo.” Schlatt sighed, relaxing. He really did panic for a second there, even if he didn’t think so. 

“Hello there, Tubbo. I’m Wilbur. And this is my son Fundy. He’s three, just like you.” Wilbur gave Fundy a pat on the head, and the small fox kept his eyes on the effervescent little boy beside him. “Why don’t you two go play together?” 

Tubbo nodded and took the wary kid with him, leading him inside by the hand, but Fundy kept his stance on the concrete. 

“We play outside?” Fundy asked politely, and Tubbo nodded excitedly. 

“Oh boys, I don’t think Wilbur wants to stay out here.” Quackity nodded over at Wilbur, but the man shook his head.

“I don’t care Big Q, the kids can play wherever they want. We can always chat out here, if that’s okay with you two.” Wilbur waved at them.

“No, no I don’t give a shit if we’re inside or out. You’re here, aren’t you? That’s enough, I’d say.” Schlatt gave Wilbur a slap on the shoulder, and they all took a seat on the pavement as the boys ran off to the grass surrounding Quackity’s house. 

“So… a kid?” Quackity asked. “How’s that been? With a job and all… I’m assuming you have a job, look at you. You look like a fucking librarian.”

Wilbur chuckled. “I’m surprised that’s not it. And yknow, Fundy isn’t too much of a hassle. The only issue I really have with him is getting him up in the morning, which runs in with my job a bit.”

“No fucking way, lucky bastard,” Schlatt interjected, “My little shit gets me up at 6 every morning.  _ Sometimes  _ I get those peaceful mornings, but never enough.”

Wilbur gave a guffaw. “Sucks to suck, J.” 

“Where do you work, smartass?” Everything was just the same as it was in high school. Wilbur and Schlatt would insult each other, and Alex would be the peacemaker, or he would fuel the fire. There was no in between.

“I actually have a manager’s position at a local business office. I know it sounds stupid as hell, but I’m actually hoping to become the CEO of the company, though everyone says I could be a president.” Wilbur shrugged. 

“Damn, what the fuck? A president? Of what? Where the hell do you live?” Quackity asked, nudging Wilbur.

“Pogtopia. I moved there to go to the University. It was a brand new place at the time, and it finally got its name maybe… last year?” Wilbur spoke. “Pretty cool, I think.”

“‘Pogtopia’, what a name.” Schlatt shook his head. “Jesus Christ.”

“‘L’manberg’ really isn’t that great either, Schlatt,” Wilbur scoffed.

“Gentlemen, who fucking cares?” Quackity leaned to face both of them. “Please.”

“Yeah yeah. But anyway, how did…” Schlatt looked over to Fundy and his kid playing. “Yknow.”

“I could ask you the same thing. And Big Q, do you have any secret kids?” Wilbur turned to Quackity.

“Holy god, no. No I don’t, thank you.”

“Ah, okay. Good for you, good for you,” Wilbur jokes, giving the man a pat on the face before addressing Schlatt again. “Anyway, I suppose I’ll tell you the story of mine.”


	3. The Backstory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wilbur tells the tale of Fundy's mom, Sally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I should give a bit of a content warning for this chapter, because it's rather sad! Death is talked about in this chapter. It doesn't go into much detail, but Wilbur does tell a bit of a sob story; I definitely felt while writing this. I tried to tell it in "Wilbur fashion"- very dramatic. 
> 
> ALSO before anyone says anything, Sally is humanized in this! She's a hybrid but without any of the physical features.

Wilbur took a breath. “You guys remember Sally, surely.” 

Quackity and Schlatt nodded, giving affirming words. 

“Okay, well, she actually showed up at my university a few months after I had left, and she had some news for me. Apparently, she was pregnant, and it was almost definitely my child, considering she hadn’t been seeing anyone else. We had an agreement to break up when I had gone so she didn’t have to worry about falling out of love, but when this came up, we kinda had to get back together. Not only because of the kid, but I still genuinely loved her, and she had come all that way…” Wilbur gave a light laugh. “I wasn’t just gonna send her home.

“We got an apartment together, a really cheap one, which was easy since Pogtopia was new and needed a population. We took off right where we left off; it was as if nothing had ever put our relationship on hold. It was so nice to be with her again, and I’m sure she felt the same.”

Schlatt and Quackity nodded along.

“We had every single intention to raise our baby together. A few months later when we saw fit, we eloped. It was brilliant, our idea- I would graduate from Uni and then become a businessman, and she would go on to become a teacher. We would buy a house, and live in it for the rest of our lives, maybe even have a few more kids, because even though Fundy was a surprise, we were thrilled to be having a kid that was  _ ours.” _

Schlatt upwardly grunted at that. He wasn’t happy at  _ all  _ when he heard that the girl he hooked up with was pregnant, and he regretted not showing enthusiasm, considering Tubbo was actually a great kid. Instead he felt remorse and guilt all throughout the three terms, and even more so when the kid was thrown to him. 

“But… everything went horribly wrong. Horribly, horribly wrong. And I don’t even know where it all started. She was fine one moment, and it seemed like in a blink of an eye… she fell ill.”

Schlatt was pulled from whatever thought he had and turned all his attention back to Wilbur. What the fuck? He didn’t expect a sob story.

“It was the last month of Sally’s pregnancy, and we had been so excited, because the fun times and hard times were about to begin, and even though hard times were gonna be a bit more fervent than the good times, we were so ready for it. We had a nursery, toys, handmade blankets, a gender-neutral color scheme.” Wilbur laughed weakly, “Sal always fussed when I would mention finding out about the gender of our baby.”

Quackity gave a weak smile, placing a hand on Wilbur’s shoulder, encouraging him to continue.

“She was in the hospital quite a bit, and for different reasons. Some were to check up on the baby, and some were because she would fall down unexpectedly, or she wouldn’t wake up from a nap, or she would be coughing for too long and too hard. We had no idea what was wrong with her, and since he was pregnant, she couldn’t take many medications. Her biggest fear was hurting Fundy.

“Eventually, it was time for our baby to come into the world.” Wilbur smiled at the boys that were playing in the grass. “I… I didn’t think she would make it. She had gotten so much weaker, but she reassured me as we were taken to the room, she said she would make it, she said she would be fine.” 

Quackity glanced at Schlatt, who was listening intently.

“And she was. She made it out okay, and things were starting to look up for me. I thought she was gone right then and there, I thought that when our baby’s cry would fill my ears, she wouldn’t be there to listen to it. But when the doctors handed back our baby, she told me she felt even  _ worse.  _ She said she didn’t think she could bear to get up and walk ever again, she didn’t think she could even hold our baby if she wasn’t lying down. Obviously, this worried me, and I promised that we would get through this, that  _ she  _ would get through this.”

Wilbur shook his head and cleared his throat, turning to look at the other two men.

“She didn’t make it. The next morning I woke up to a loud beeping noise, and nurses were crowding in our room. Fundy, in his casket, was screeching, but I paid no mind as I was waved over to the medical bed. There was my beautiful wife, Sally. She was sleeping peacefully it seemed as these people tried to zap her ruthlessly awake. I didn’t know what to do, I was frozen in my spot. 19, I had no clue how to handle this. I didn’t see this coming, ever. We had our whole lives mapped out, and here she was, stuck in this timeline before she could move on.

“All I could do was watch as the doctors and nurses surrounded her; I was practically shoved up against the bed. I was holding her hand through all of it, silent, though the room was bustling- it was the loudest fucking room I’d ever been in. Eventually, things settled, and that was only because someone had come in to announce her gone.”

Quackity rubbed at Wilbur’s shoulder as the man sniffed, shaking his head. 

“She looked so peaceful, y'know? I knew she wouldn’t want me to be in vain, to be mad at anyone, any higher authority or power, so I wasn’t. I was inhumanely calm through all of it. I had to be, I had a son to raise. He needed me, and luckily, I had him. I wanted to fulfill her wish of having a kid with me. It was as if she was with me through the insanity, assuring me that she was okay and safe, that I didn’t have to be afraid or worry. I could’ve sworn there was a small smile on her face as she slept there in that bed.

“I tell Fundy stories about her everyday,” Wilbur looked over to Fundy again. “I want him to know about her just as much as the three of us do. I want to tell her story.”

Schlatt placed a hand on Wilbur’s shoulder, almost touching Quackity’s as he reached around him. 

“I’m sorry about that, man,” Quackity spoke quietly, genuinely. 

“It’s gotten easier. Telling stories about her really helps. She wouldn’t have wanted me to be a sad couch potato, so I simply wasn’t. I saw a therapist when I needed to, and my business partners were there to help me out. Schlatt, your letters really brought me up in that time as well, so thank you.” 

“Wait, you got my letters?” Schlatt raised an eyebrow.

“Oh yeah, of course. I always made sure to send one… did you-” Wilbur’s brows furrowed. “Did you not receive my letters?” 

Schlatt’s eyes went wide. “You sent fucking letters? I assumed you hated me or some shit!”

Wilbur laughed. “Oh no! No no, I definitely sent letters! How did you not get them?”

“Do you see the neighborhood I fucking live in? Chances are any mail that looked valuable was stolen. And I just  _ know  _ that you used those fancy ass envelopes to send them in.” 

Wilbur scoffed. “Yeah, yeah I suppose you’re right.” 

They were interrupted by Tubbo’s loud laugh, followed by Fundy’s. They turned to their children in the grass.

“Worms!” Tubbo and Fundy exclaimed, throwing them up in the air. 

“Fucking Christ,” Schlatt sighed as the other two men laughed. “They’re gonna need baths. Who’s gonna get the hose?”

“For the last time, you can’t just hose down your kid when he plays in dirt, Schlatt,” Quackity reprimanded. Wilbur chuckled. 

“Speaking of said kid, now you gotta tell me your sob story.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> man, who's cutting onions in here? oh yeah. yeah that's me. sorry about that.


	4. Story Sharing Continues

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Schlatt fucking sucks at telling stories.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is much more light-hearted!! Sorry about the absolute bomb that was yesterday's chapter, but what can I say? We needed a sad story, sue me.

“I’m pretty sure you won the fucking ‘sad story’ award for today, Wilbur,” Schlatt teased. 

“Oh cmon, you have to fill me in, whether it's sad or not.” Wilbur sat to face Schlatt- they were now sitting in a bit of a triangle; it brought Schlatt back to the lunches they would have in high school.

“Sure sure, I guess. It’s really not that dramatic though. I was fooling around, knocked some broad up, and boom. Baby was made. She hated my guts, I felt like shit, then she kicked me to the side with the baby. I have literally never talked to her since then, nor have I even tried to. Simple as that.” Schlatt shrugged.

Quackity and Wilbur looked at him with a deadpan. 

“You fucking suck at telling stories, man. It was so much more… difficult… than that.” Quackity shook his head. 

“What can I say? You want me to shed some tears? Maybe do a lil dance? C'mon guys, I’m stuck with a kid, I’d say that’s pretty dramatic on its own.”

Wilbur gave a laugh. “But… she just put the kid on you? Never came back? Were you excited to have the kid?”

Schlatt wanted to change the subject. Sure, Tubbo was pretty great, it was neat to have a small, nice version of him running around, but he didn’t want to admit that he struggled with admitting that he loved his son. Because of course he did, but he didn’t want to believe it.

“Ah yeah, yeah she said she wasn’t responsible enough for a kid, as if I was. But I couldn’t have said anything, she probably would’ve, like, sued me or some shit. Something would’ve definitely happened. For a while there I thought her dad was after my ass.” Schlatt laughed. 

“You didn’t try to talk it out with her?” Wilbur asked. Quackity shook his head. 

“She wouldn’t listen to him, Wil. Not even for a second. He wasn’t even alerted when she was going into labor, he showed up to the hospital and she was gone. The doctors handed him the baby,” Quackity explained. 

“Yeah, pretty much.” Schlatt looked away. He didn’t want to be sympathized with. He thought he didn’t deserve it.

“That’s terrible man, I’m sorry,” Wilbur frowned. “You don’t deserve that.”

_ I kinda do, but thanks anyways. _

Quackity cleared his throat, knowing that Schlatt didn’t like talking about what happened. “That’s kinda crazy that you guys had your kids around the same time. 18 and 18.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. What is it with 18 year olds being reckless?” Wilbur chuckled, and Schlatt followed. 

“Maybe if you would’ve stayed I wouldn’t be in this mess. You were always really good at spotting a bad apple,” Schlatt threw his hands around as he spoke.

“You just liked girls too much, I couldn’t stop you. Neither could Big Q.”

“Hey hey I tried my best,” Quackity laughed. “He didn’t listen to me either.”

Throughout the rest of the day, the three men sat outside sharing stories and reliving past ones while keeping an eye on the toddlers. They were wrestling, chasing each other, and digging up bugs and stuff. Occasionally, Fundy would come over to Schlatt and Quackity and hand them a flower shyly, then before either of them could say a word he was trotting back to where Tubbo was crouched over the roots of a tree. 

Wilbur shared what it was like as a parent on his end- he explained that Fundy had a babysitter from 9-5, and how when Wilbur would come home, the boy would run into his arms and squeeze him as tight as he could. Fundy loved his dad. And Schlatt was sure Tubbo would do the same thing if Schlatt could find a babysitter and was able to be gone all day. 

“So, uh, maybe a bit bad to ask this, but whatever happened with your brother? Did your dad ever find him?” Quackity asked. Somehow, the topic of Wilbur’s brother came up. 

“Oh, well… no. No, we don’t know where he is still. But Phil actually has another kid at home with him now. I have yet to meet him, but I guess he’s about your kid’s age? I was told he was a toddler, at least. He wasn’t exactly sure on the age himself.” 

Schlatt nodded. “Well that’s ass, sorry he’s still lost. You’ll probably find him wandering in the woods or some shit.” 

“Yeah, yeah probably,” Wilbur laughed. “I know he’s okay, though. He’s a warrior. Phil assures me all the time.”

A bit later, they all went inside; it was about 7 when the sun was all the way down. The boys had found a few bunnies to play with, and whined when they were instructed to come inside, but they didn’t put too much of a fuss. Fundy had come out of his shell a little bit- he was less tentative around Schlatt and Quackity, and especially around Tubbo. They got along great, much to Wilbur’s relief.

Apparently, Fundy didn’t have that many friends at the daycare he occasionally went to when the babysitter wasn’t available. No, Wilbur described him as a “recluse.” He stuck to himself and didn’t dare to talk to anyone that didn’t address him first. So him making a friend in a matter of hours was quite surprising, but in the best way.

They just ordered pizza, too busy catching up on life to cook dinner for themselves, even though Quackity was set on making dinner that night to show off his skills; Wilbur assured him that they would have all week to do that. 

In all honesty, Schlatt didn’t think one week was enough. He wanted a whole month, maybe a year, maybe just for him to  _ stay,  _ but he gets why Wilbur can’t. Wilbur had his mind set on a position, and Schlatt knew that once the man had his mind set on something, it was never going down the drain. He was proud of his friend. 

The kids practically passed out around 10, falling asleep on the couch as the din of the TV filled the dark house. One light only remained on, and that was the kitchen light as the men sat around the table, talking fervently about their plans for the week, everything they wanted to do. Wilbur expressed how he thought that having kids would change absolutely everything in his life, and how he thought the visit wasn't going to be much fun. While it changed his life, it did for the better, he said. 

Schlatt was very glad that Wilbur had such a positive outlook on life. He didn’t seem to be as worn down as Schlatt, and he even admitted that he drank sometimes when he was stressed. He looked like he didn’t stay up on his nights off just to spite himself, he looked fresh. He didn’t have a constant lingering scent of alcohol, and even if he did, it would be of wine. 

They finally decided to sleep for the night once they figured out what the week held for them. Quackity showed Wilbur to his room while Schlatt draped a blanket over the kids who were snoring on the couch. He gave Tubbo a small pat on the forehead- maybe things weren’t so bleak. Maybe things were gonna be okay, just like Wilbur always said to himself. 

Quackity came back out from the hall, and they heard Wilbur call a “goodnight!” from the room. They shouted it back, followed with a short laugh from all of them. Quackity and Schlatt’s gaze met, and they both gave an affirming look to one another, one that sort of read as “the boys are back,” or some dumb shit like that. 

Schlatt set up a space in Quackity’s room to sleep in, and they let the darkness engulf them as they awaited the next day.


	5. Fun Times

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What went on that week that Wilbur was there?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This isn’t much of a chapter, but more of just a bullet pointed list that goes into briefly explaining what the small group did that week!

Of course, Wilbur stayed at Quackity’s house, and while Schlatt only stayed for the first night, he was sure to come over early every morning the next six days, which was easy because his boy was already up at 6AM, so they could get there by 7.

  * Their first day was more catching up while Tubbo showed Fundy the toys he brought over. He didn’t have many, and a lot of them were from the thrift store or from Karl, but Fundy was enamoured nonetheless. Fundy showed Tubbo his toys as well- at least the ones he brought- which consisted of a plush fish and a small rock. Those two things were his favorite.
  * The next day, Quackity insisted that he show Wilbur and Fundy a park that was a few miles from his house- the one right next to his house wasn’t open yet. With much fervor, Fundy had agreed, chanting “park, park, park!”, leading Tubbo to join in with him. They spent the day there; they packed a picnic lunch so they wouldn’t have to go all the way back to Quackity’s place to eat. The kids played on everything they could, and no one even said anything when the boys would climb up the slides. Who fucking cared? Every kid has to do that, at least _once._ It’s like a ritual.
  * By the third day, Schlatt and Quackity hadn’t stopped mentioning Karl, so Wilbur finally suggested that he wanted to meet the guy. Quackity called Karl, and of course the man was enthused to meet their high school best friend, so he invited them over. Day bags were packed for the kids and they headed over there around noon-ish. While the kids played, Karl introduced himself to Wilbur, and they exchanged a few stories- Karl learned much about Schlatt, Quackity and Wilbur’s high school lives. Eventually the game system was turned on because Wilbur wanted to prove he was the god of Wii bowling. He was.



The next few days were rather nonchalant; more stories were brought up, they talked about Quackity’s mom some more, and everyday they went out to get the kids ice-cream (Wilbur’s treat). Schlatt was glad his friend was in town, and when it was time for him to go, it was just as sad as it had been in high school. Wilbur said he had a plan to go see his dad, Phil, on his way back to Pogtopia, so that was something to be happy about. 

Fundy and Tubbo didn’t want to say goodbye to each other, but Wilbur and Schlatt promised to maybe see each other more, especially now that the unreasonable tension between them was solved. So on the seventh day, Wilbur was gone, and was definitely to be seen again. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Sorry if it felt rushed, but I honestly didn't think I had enough ideas to write out the entire week.
> 
> What do you think they did throughout the week? I would love to hear headcanons!! <3
> 
> Any requests/suggestions for what you want me to write? Leave them in the comments as well!!


End file.
